Proper way to squeeze the trigger

[Gunsmoker]

I think I read somewhere that the proper way to squeeze the trigger of a gun is to use the tip of the finger right where your fingerprints are the smallest circles.

With the long pull of my DA revolver, it feels more comfortable to squeeze the trigger with my first finger joint right on the trigger. I'm also comfortable using my fingertip.

What do you guys use?

And what is technically the proper way?

 

[lamazza]

Both ways are ok. Which ever you are comfortable with. My personal style has evolved,somehow, into finger tip squeeze, but I know better shots than I that use finger joint.

 

[AirForceShooter]

I hate the word "Squeeze".
My best advice was "pull the front sight through the rear sight".
Then, dry fire. A lot.

AFS

 

[Gunsmoker]

With my finger joint, it feels like I'm squeezing the gun. Probably because this grip gives me the strongest feel.

With my fingertip, it feels like I'm pulling the trigger back.

 

[MrBorland]

I assume you're asking about DA trigger pull on a DA revolver. I rarely shoot my DA revolver in SA mode, but when I do, I use the tip of my finger. In DA mode, though, with as high a grip as I can get, I seat the trigger just behind the 1st joint, and I feel like I can control the pull better. Plus, it's flat out easier to pull.

However....when I follow the front sight during recoil, I notice the the muzzle doesn't rise straight up; rather, it goes slightly off to the right, say slightly past 1:00. I may be wrong on all this, but to me, this indicates the back of the gun isn't seated in the exact center of my hand web, but more towards my thumb joint, and that the 1:00 recoil may be an indicator that my pull isn't perfect and is pulling the gun to the right. When I try to seat the gun in the center of the web, though, the trigger lies in front of the 1st joint, and makes the pull much more difficult and jerky. I've tried dry fire practice with this re-adjusted position, but it just ain't workin' for me.

My thought then is to try to seat the gun in the center of your web and let your finger fall where it does, and observe where the muzzle goes during recoil. If you're able to shoot DA smoothly and accurately like that, keep it there. If not, adjust the position so your finger can pull the trigger smoothly. Of course, dry fire may be a great way to work on this.

 

[Gunsmoker]

Which leads me to my next question,

should you try to grip the pistol at the highest position possible?

 

[MrBorland]

should you try to grip the pistol at the highest position possible?

I've always thought so for a few reasons: First, to me, it simply feels a better, firmer grip. Second, the higher my grip, the lower the bore axis relative to my hand, which helps control muzzle flip. Finally, the higher I go, the closer I get to the trigger, so I can get a decent seat both into my web and on the trigger. For me, though, perfection might be if this distance (between the back of the gun and the trigger) were a wee bit shorter.

Here's a link to an article that addresses some of this:

http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/ayoob85.html

 

[Gunsmoker]

The gun doesn't point very naturally when I grip the gun at the highest points.

 

[GRIZ22]

And what is technically the proper way?

Either. I usually hook my finger to the first joint firing DA and pad of the fingertip shooting SA.

should you try to grip the pistol at the highest position possible?

Correct. As a rule. If you have small hands you may have to grip it lower to reach the trigger.

The gun doesn't point very naturally when I grip the gun at the highest points.

The only problem I can see with this is the ability to grip the pistol in the same place rather than the highest point. If yo can consistently grip in the same place (maybe because of the type of grips you have) then it doesn't make a difference.

There are a lot of things that are the "right way" for most of the people. However, if what you are doing is safe and let's you do if better, do it your way.

 

[coelacanth]

the ergonomics of a double action revolver. . . . .

and how it fits your individual hand are very subtle and sometimes even a relatively minor change can make a big difference. Generally a high grip will do two things 1) Lower the axis of the bore in relation to your forearm which reduces perceived recoil and enhances control. 2) Gives you slighty better leverage on the trigger as it pivots back and up in relation to the grip. That said, there will be some people who will benefit from a grip adapter or stocks that slightly fill in the area behind the trigger guard. This raises the gun in your grip by a small amount but can be quite comfortable if your hand is large enough to allow it. This is particularly true for the harder kicking magnum calibers. Custom grips are available from many sources and I understand that the excellent T-Grip adapter is still available from Tyler's. Regarding the placement of your trigger finger, both methods work well and depending on whether the face of the trigger is smooth or grooved use whatever is most comfortable consistent with accurate shooting.

 

[NavyLCDR]

I found something that is extremely helpful: If you can mount a laser on the gun, even a cheap $20 from Walmart, watch the laser while you are dry firing. You don't even have to shoot with it attached. Many people get a good sight picture and jerk the trigger because they think they have to shoot when the proper sight picture is attained. Ideally, you should come close to the ideal sight picture and begin trigger squeeze. As the sights pass through the dead-on target position, hopefully you will complete the trigger squeeze and the gun will fire at the correct position.

When your sights pass through the perfect dead-on position you should stop squeezing, but maintain the pressure on the trigger. When the sights begin to return to the dead-on position, continue increasing the pressure. With practice you will get the gun to fire at the dead-on position, but it should surprise you each time the gun fires. If you don't have that bit of a surprise when the gun fires, it means you are jerking the trigger.

What you watch for with the laser is for your trigger squeeze to be pulling or pushing the gun. Try to complete the trigger squeeze with the laser as steady as possible.

 

[Nameless_Hobo]

Seems to me that tip works best on guns with light triggers, and joint works better on guns with heavy triggers.

 

[DavidVS]

Here's a simple test...

If you do not have laser grips, tape a turned-on pen-laser to the revolver. Dry-fire it, adjusting how you place your finger on the trigger. This will reveal the finger placement that allows you to do a complete trigger pull with minimal unintentional side-to-side movement (as shown by the laser on a wall).

I've read that most people fire a double action revolver with their outermost joint on the trigger, not the pad of the finger. This provides more strength, but tends to cause sideways pull. Usually somewhere between the pad and the first joint is optimal. Some people's fingers and hands are shaped so that the pad itself is optimal.

 

[USBP 1969]

Hello Gunsmoker.

We taught folks to set up their DA grip as follows:

1) Grasp the empty revolver with the non-shooting hand around the cylinder and frame with the gun canted at about a 45 degree angle from the vertical.

2) Insert the trigger until the first joint (from the tip) of the trigger finger comes into contact with the outer edge of the center of the trigger. Note: At this point the only contact the gun hand is making with the revolver is on the trigger.

3) Then, simply wrap the gun hand comfortably around the grip.

That's it for the gun hand unless the shooter's hand is very small or large. Ideally, we wanted the recoil shoulder of the grip to be fairly centered in the web of the hand. As viewed from above, the barrel should ideally be in line with the forearm or slightly to the right of that line for a right handed shooter, but never to the left.

Contrary to what one might think, smaller shooters, especially those who experienced problems with the weight of the DA pull, preferred to get a lower grip on the revolver to get more leverage on the trigger. It made for a longer reach to the trigger, but made the trigger pull more manageable for shooters with less strength.

After they got their shooting hand grip set up we demonstrated a number of different support hand grips positions and then let them choose what seemed to serve them best at that point in time.

Hope that helps.

Respectfully,
Kent